31 May, 2007

50 miles today, 283 miles total. "P.S. There were tons of hills today, but none too steep."

It did not take long to get out of Aachen, and out of Germany. Holland is in love with bikes, and practically every road is a bike route in the rural southern province. We had the option of crossing dirt farm roads or staying on pavement. It makes me so happy to know that bicycles get access like this somewhere on the planet.

It threatened rain all day. With so many bike routes the trick is finding the right one! Packs of roadies passed us with gleams in their eyes and smiles on their faces. The fields of wheat and hops? were amazing and we even saw a windmill.

The language here is extremely difficult for us and without their English we would be resorting to pointing or using German.

30 May, 2007

"We are near the vineyards, through the vineyards, through small, quaint villages."

The sun is shining and the bike paths are back on the menu! Returning to Koblenz we saw all the beautiful scenery and bike paths we had missed in the rain. The path along this section is usually not right on the river, but instead meanders through villages and vineyards.

This was our favorite bit of riding so far. The Mosel is more natural than the Rhine with less cars, trains, and barges.

When in Koblenz we did a little shopping. I got nagelknippers and we had some more Asain food. I was occasionally trying a wurst or schweinfleisch to get a feel for German cuisine. Currywurst and Pommes-Frites became a staple. A hamburger can not be found anywhere beyond McFranchises that I do not frequent. They do occasional offer "Hamburger" on a menu, but they are a pork/vege patty. These are a version more true to the name, and less appetizing to my beef trained tastes.

A tip we picked up is to bring your own water into restaurants. In most eating establishments "wasser" meant a small, bottled, relatively expensive glass of mineral water. No one ever complained when we downed liters of our tap water in order to stay hydrated.

Getting on the train was not difficult. Bikes cost a little extra, and you must check to see if the train has a bike car. A picture of a bike is listed next to the train on the schedule and is posted outside of that car, usually in the front or rear.

When we switched trains in Koln it required us to take our loaded bikes up two escalators and down two flights of stairs in a crowded terminal.

We arrived in Aachen, got lost, and eventually found the campsite after getting directions. The old downtown is pretty darn cool.

29 May, 2007

Burg Eltz is widely regarded as one of the best castles in Germany. Over the hundreds of years it has never been destroyed and the original family still ownes it today. Taking the short but informative tour leads you through the rooms with historical decor.

Burg Eltz gives you a sense what it would be like to live in a castle; cramped, cold, and plumbing that only flushes in the rain.

The hike to the castle from Moselkern is delightful. I highly recommend the walk. The numerous other trails that link together in the woods look tempting.

The remote setting in the misty hills is almost surreal and brings to mind so many fairy-tales.

27 May, 2007

Sleepy Sunday and we are hanging around town doing laundry at our fabulous campsite, and planning our side-trip up the Mosel River.

The Germans must be a testament to exercise. It seems like most people drink beer/wine, smoke, snack on sweets, and eat fatty meats. I think it is the walking and biking that limits the negative effects of this diet.

There was a little carnival/fair in Koblenz. It looked familiar to us from afar, but upon closer inspection it featured meat, cheese, and house plant auctions. It was more of an outdoor market with kiddie rides. Our favorite place was the gummi-bar. Every type of gummi candy imaginable!

26 May, 2007

Today it is cloudy and an easy ride backtracking downriver to Koblenz. We abandoned our plan to ride a massive loop through Idar-Oberstein to my former home at Greis and back along the Mosel River.

Now we'll ride one day down the Mosel to Burg Eltz castle and return to Koblenz before hopping a train into Holland. I definitely want to go Dutch for a few days.

We stopped for pizza in Bacharach, which is pretty but a bit touristy.

In Koblenz we pitched camp and headed into town for dinner. We found an Asian restaurant that had many vegetarian options. Being vegetarian limits Heather's choices here and we often resort to fries. Walking home dark clouds rolled in and lightning filled the sky.

25 May, 2007

28 miles today, 135 total. "Thought that today was the most beautiful stretch of the Rhine so far."

We started the day early at nearby castle Rheinfels. The grounds are extensive and we had a great time exploring the castle by ourselves before the tourist shuttles arrived. Being alone helps me visualize the castle of ages past, instead of being shuffled along by a tour guide. Ruins rock!

I would recommend this castle, especially if you have kids or are a kid at heart, since you can run around and get hands on with history.

After the castle we broke camp and headed up the Rhine. The views today were spectacular, and so was the heat! The past couple days have been downright hot and the German men are sporting their speedos.

The bike path meanders from highway shoulder to village gardens or along the river's edge. Lovely riding.

As we rolled into Bingin, construction had torn up most of the Rhine bike path and we saw no detour signs. The town was less romantic and the campground was lumpy.

Frustrations boiled over since we were still recovering, adjusting, and getting mayonnaise on salads.

23 May, 2007

Today was our highest mileage day at 105km. This got us to Koblenz. The only confusing part is just south of Koln where you encounter a power plant. When you go over the train tracks only cross the first set. The path is there and not in the village on the other side of the 2nd set. There were no clear signs.

I've read that this section is not scenic and we considered skipping it by train, but I'm glad we did not. Although you see no castles, the path is great and feels so...German...

Heading into Koblenz the path gets a little scattered, just watch for signs.
Koblenz itself is a charm of a city. The historically restored downtown is beautiful and has great access to shopping/restaurants. This city is just over 100,000 people and felt more our pace compared to Koln at nearly a million.

The campsite here was our favorite for the price. It had a really laid-back atmosphere. It was the only busy campsite we encountered, probably due to the great location right on the confluence of the Rhine and Mosel Rivers. I expect it gets full during peak months since it was popular with Dutch, German, and non-Euro vacation goers alike.

Our camping neighbors were two Australians riding the Rhine from Budapest to Amsterdam. They had been riding for weeks and loving every minute.

22 May, 2007

It doesn't take long to realize that bikes have awesome access around Koln. We rolled out of the airport and onto a bike path!

The numerous bridges that cross the Rhine all had great bike paths separate from traffic.

When we got to "Neumarkt" (new downtown) I stopped at Meyerische, a large bookstore chain. The bike map department was huge! You could get bike maps for almost anywhere within 500 miles. I picked up some Bikeline maps and we did a little sight seeing.

To end the day we stayed in one of the two fine camps located just south of downtown on the Rhine. Most campgrounds include showers, washing machines, and a store/restaurant. It really isn't roughing it. These camps are right in the city and are amazingly safe.

21 May, 2007

Since we were flying over the east coast it was a great time to visit my parents.

I arrive at my parental sanctuary-resort from Atlanta feeling a bit off. During diner I got full quickly and retired early. That night I was up sick till morning.

We could not delay our departure for any reasonable amount of money.

After another restless night, still unable to eat or drink more than a few sips, I embarked onto a small aircraft for a shuttle to NJ. Our plane sat on the tarmac without water for five painful hours before taking off. In New Jersey it was raining and we had missed our departure; to be rescheduled tomorrow.

Over the next 10 hours at the airport hotel I started to feel human again. The next day, while waiting for our flight in the terminal, Heather encouraged me to eat while we waited to board. I refused and let her use my food vouchers.

After flying through the night we caught our first glimpse of the Rhine in the morning light. The anticipation of assembling the bikes and finding our hotel had me feeling better. Heather, on the other hand, was having increasing stomach pains; much the same as I had. This was going to be ugly.

I have not eaten and barely drank in two and a half days and now Heather is looking worse every 20 minutes. Standing in line at customs we drew a few glances. I was conserving energy by taking a knee in line, Heather was making audible moans while clutching her stomach, both of us were pale and sweaty.

We had to exchange currency, assemble the bikes, dispose of the cardboard boxes, and then ride to the "Bett und Bike" hotel.

assembling our bikes in the airport

Heather held together amazingly well, forced to stay with our luggage as I ran through the terminals asking where to dispose of large cardboard boxes and exchange money. When I could not find a place to dispose of the boxes, we decided to walk outside to look for a dumpster with our bikes.

We got 10ft (9m) outside the revolving doors when Heather got sick.Food poisoning? Nasty stomach virus? We'll never know.After getting slightly lost, discovering we had no local maps and didn't know how to work the rented British cell-phone, we found the hotel thanks to a friendly local.It was beautiful and the TV had bike racing on two channels. Totally exhausted, I wept in bed as Heather worked through her sickness.After an hour we went to buy nourishment in the form of vegetable broth & potato chips. We forced ourselves to stay awake until 6:30pm local time by walking the neighborhood in a half-dead zombie-daze. At 6:29pm we collapsed in an epic manner of emotional and physical magnitude.

16 May, 2007

410 miles over 25 days along the Rhine and Mosel Rivers, with side-trips to Southern Netherlands and Bavaria.

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Germany & Holland embrace bicycles. No one makes you feel weird for accommodating your bike. It is a fact of life.

Our bike trip will follow well traveled routes, the Rhine and Mosel Rivers, except for gaunts into southern Holland and Bavaria.

The following pages are short descriptions of what we did each day and what the bicycle riding was like along that route. Without Heather's journaling I would be at a loss for specific details, the quotes are from her writing.

-enjoy-

Germany and Holland have ideal bike riding. If your perfect vacation includes miles of dedicated bike path, scenic surroundings both natural and man-made, no exposure to heavy or fast vehicular traffic, concise maps and signs, and easy access to camping then you will not be disappointed.

I spent more time researching routes and sites than one would need. It was nice to have all the background info, but our plans changed almost daily and maps were always readily available.

Originally, I wanted to go up the Rhine and loop back on the Mosel. Instead we abandoned the plans. Why rush? We wanted to leave time for a leisurely trip to Holland and my old stomping grounds at Greis.

We visited 3 very unique and noteworthy castles. Burg Eltz (historically preserved), Rinefels (ruins), and Schloss Neuschwanstein (most famous).
Hiking is very popular and leaving the bike is the only way to "wander" many of these trails. Try currywurst, avoid "hamburgers"*(see day 10), and when you cross paths with a festival stay a while!

I feel comfortable speaking broken German, but I was at a loss with Dutch. I was delighted when my German elicited a response, even if I did not understand a single word. Thankfully every person we spoke with knew some English. In fact so many people spoke so well, that I began to feel silly asking if they spoke English.

GEAR
I spent less than $300 for two rear and one front rack with panniers.
I used cheap nylon panniers and inexpensive dry bags that fit inside of them. This was a slight inconvenience since it took a number of bungees and compression straps to make them stable.
All our stuff
basic tent (REI halfdome)
sleeping bags and therma-rests
maps & guides
bike tools, tubes
extra day's food, snacks
clothes
tarps
rain-gear
toiletries
hiking sandals
personal items (camera, journal, good luck charms)
== == ==

Financing:
We went in May-June and it was the end of off-season. Although tourists are always found mid-day at the most popular destinations, we avoided the summer peak and reaped the benefits of saving money and time competing with crowds.

The most expensive part was the plane tickets. We found camping for $12-17 per night, groceries similar to US retail, eating out was more expensive w/19% tax and 5% tip, medium length train rides about $30/person with bike, and we got student discounts on castle admissions for about $12.
-- -- -- --

Bike maps can be obtained along the way, or often found posted at local paths. Digging into some Deutsch web-pages revealed detailed maps all over Germany.